top band of kilt

[jthk]

When people are making kilts, I notice that some folks try to match the tartan of the kilt with the tartan stripes on the top band. Some kiltmakers don't bother to match the lines and then some kilts have a different colour band along the top: some green, some black. I'm assuming this is ultimately personal preference but I suspect there may be a civilian vs. military thing going on. Could someone sort me out?

Thanks,
Jonathan

[kilted redleg]

jthk


First let me start out by saying I'm not a kilt maker! There is a kiltmaker on you tube named Robert Macdonald who covers all aspects of kilt making and will tell what the different color bands are for.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNL6m1-GaRk Green signifies military though if you are a veteran and go to him for a kilt ex. Seaforth Highlanders and served in that unit he'll give you a green band on your kilt. He covers the tartan band on a kilt he made and how hard it is some times to line up the tartan.
That said any kilt maker worth their salt - Barb T, Steve Ashton, Robert Macdonald et al; will make sure the tartan band on top will match the kilt perfectly.
That said as a US Army veteran if I had a regimental kilt made I think I would ask for a black top waist band.
Hope this helps.

[jthk]

Thanks a million!

jthk


First let me start out by saying I'm not a kilt maker! There is a kiltmaker on you tube named Robert Macdonald who covers all aspects of kilt making and will tell what the different color bands are for.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNL6m1-GaRk Green signifies military though if you are a veteran and go to him for a kilt ex. Seaforth Highlanders and served in that unit he'll give you a green band on your kilt. He covers the tartan band on a kilt he made and how hard it is some times to line up the tartan.
That said any kilt maker worth their salt - Barb T, Steve Ashton, Robert Macdonald et al; will make sure the tartan band on top will match the kilt perfectly.
That said as a US Army veteran if I had a regimental kilt made I think I would ask for a black top waist band.
Hope this helps.

[The Wizard of BC]

There is a lot of stuff out there stated like it is fact. The truth is - we don't really know why the top band of some kilts were made from different colors or if there was any 'standard' or unit designation.

It is quite possible that they were using what they had on hand and that they chose horse blanket binding.

Yes, many of the military kilts that I have seen have a green twill tape top band. The current RRS kilts use a black Twill tape. It is very possible that some of the really old kilts in museums have something else. Peter would be the one to know.

And it is very possible that a color or material was used for a while and could possibly change due to a different kiltmaker, contract, or whim of the RSM. And yes, military uniform regulations change all the time. In my experience a change of RSM can result in a total change of how the kilt would be made and worn.

But what color a person chooses for the top band is really up to the person laying down their money. Today it is usual for non military contract kilts for the top band to be Tartan fabric from the center of the double-width fabric. It is also usual that the Tartan of the top band is aligned with the Tartan of the outer apron.

But if you are not in a military unit, and subject to the uniform requirements of that unit, there are no hard and fast rules that you could somehow violate.

[figheadair]

As Steve says, there is a lot of information about tartans and kilts presented as fact. The true is often far more nuanced.

Modern kilts have a waistband to enclose the raw edge which would otherwise fray and look untidy. Historically all kilts before c1840, military or civilian, were made from the full width of the material, which was narrower than today’s cloth, 22-25 inches. There is the odd surviving example that includes a waistband which was always added to allow for a longer length/to raise the waist height.

The earliest waistband on a military kilt I’ve seen is on the pleated section only of a surviving Crimea era Black Watch kilt, probably because the pleats were cut at the waist. That waistband, if that is what one would call it, is made from ticking (white based striped cloth). The use of bais tape on military kilts dates from the second half of the 19th century, probably quite late. Green was the most common colour but red was used on some red based tartans, Royal Stewart etc., and both seem to have been a feature of OR’s kilts. Officer’s kilts and plain kilts (London Scottish, Irish Guards etc.,) had a finer tape that was usual black or brown,

A good modern civilian kilt will usually have the tartan match to the front apron. In the past it was not uncommon for a kiltmaker to use a completely different tartan for the band, a feature that can look quite effective.

[plaid preacher]

...and just to carry the thought along, the tartan of the waistband usually matches the lines of the tartan of the outer apron, but once you get into the pleats, all bets are off. IF the kilt is pleated to the stripe then there is no possibility of matching at all; and even if the kilt is pleated to the sett, the sett in the pleats is an approximation of the actually sett of the tartan, and is pleated to contain all the elements but this can mean that certain blocks will be slightly larger or smaller than in the "true" sett, if that makes sense.